When looking at the uses of having different genres of films there are many advantages for all. In our film we used the horror genre as we felt that this is the best and easiest to portray.
Firstly genre has many different advantages for the production companies involved in making the films. It firstly allows them to follow specific conventions used in older and popular films which means that they can predict the success of there own film and ensure that there will be an audience. They can also find funding easier as they can find a company willing to fund a particular genre of film. An example of this from our own work is how we decided to use Hammer as our production company as they are known for giving large funds and having successful horror movies meaning that we could expect success for our own. Julia Kristeva's concept of intertextuality describes this as it suggests that media texts are influenced by those that have gone before them. Another advantage for the production side is that there are certain actors known for there work in certain genre of movies meaning that they come with a certain amount of fan base giving a wider audience to the film. With the horror genre it is likely that an unknown actor will be used so that the audience has no previous opinion of them allowing them to fully engine with the storyline of the film itself instead of a previous character the actor might have played. Genre also allows the production companies to follow conventions regarding setting and props meaning that they can easily and quickly illustrate the genre of the film to the audience. When producing our film by having so much research on the horror genre from films found on youtube etc, meant that we could effectively recreate the genre in our own way while still knowing that we will get a successful audience.
Genre also allows the audience some advantages for example the most obvious one being that they will instantly know if this is the sort of film they are in the mood to watch. All different people have all different interests and by having different genres of films this allows the audience to determine if a film is for them by finding out the genre. Because of all of the established themes within each genre it also allows the audience an idea of what to expect, so for example in a horror the audience can expect suspense and tension or in a romantic comedy they expect to see love and comedy. This gives the audience the opportunity to look forward to the features in the film before they see it and builds up anticipation. Genre also allows the audience to be surprised by the conventions that are challenged once again with the horror genre as an example as they are constantly pushing the boundary's and taking risks with what they show.
With regards to film distributors genre means that films are far easier to market because the audience will automatically have a good idea of what they are getting when they see the genre of the film. There are also very similar ways used to advertise films with regard to genre for example with action films a lot of the action will be shown in the television advert meaning that new distributors of this film can follow this structure and end up with successful advertising. If a film uses a well know actor connected to the genre this allows the distributor to market the film. An example of this is Hugh Grant who is well known for his work in romantic comedies. It is also easier for the distributors to know how to approach the audience as there will be specific ways in which the audience of different genres are most likely to take an interest when approached by advertising.
In our own film genre was very useful especially where research was concerned. This meant that instead of searching through films in general we could look easily at specifically the horror genre and find out the different techniques used to product and distribute this genre of film. Our work is intertextual because we took features and conventions from other films and challenged or used them in our own. An example of this is how we used fade to blacks to transition between scenes which we found was common in films such as 'Se7en' and 'American Horror Story' which fits Neale's theory that 'genres are instances of repetition and difference.'. Other conventions we found and used in our horror film opening were child actors as the object of fear, fast pace and a deserted and night time setting. This follows Lacey's repertoire of elements which states genres are broken down into setting, character, narrative, iconography and style.'
Thursday, 11 December 2014
Homework 11/12/2014
Describe the ways in which your production work and informed and aided by research into real media texts and planning. How was your ability to use research and planning for production developed over time.
Research and planning has become a vital and important part of producing and creating a good media text. Over the two years of studying media it has become more and more obvious how good and detailed research and planning helps to create the best media products for many reasons. In our foundation portfolio we chose to make a horror film opening which included many different conventions that were both challenged and used in our film opening. Research was vital for this as we had to find other similar films in our genre in order create a different yet realistic horror film opening. Within our research we found that fade to blacks, fast cuts and a build up were common conventions which we used in our work. Without this research we would not have known this and our work would not have turner out as successful as it did.
With the advanced portfolio I created a campaign awareness advert about binge drinking in teenagers and young adults. Research into existing products in this area meant that I could make my advert realistic yet different to existing products.
For both portfolios especially the foundation portfolio research meant that we could look into existing production company's in order to find the right one to produce our film. We chose to use Hammer as from research we found that this company would give us the biggest budget and has produced many films of our chosen genre.
The planning in both portfolios meant that every aspect of creating the plan was done professionally and organised meaning that if anything went wrong when creating our film it would have little to no effect on the end product. Since doing our foundation portfolio we discovered areas in which were missing in the planning which meant that when we came to the advanced portfolio the planning was even more thorough than before meaning we ended up with a more successful product.
Overall from looking back at my work I realise that my planning and research improved greatly from doing the foundation and advanced portfolio. This was shown in the improved research and planning work that I had for my advanced portfolio compared to that of my foundation portfolio.
Research and planning has become a vital and important part of producing and creating a good media text. Over the two years of studying media it has become more and more obvious how good and detailed research and planning helps to create the best media products for many reasons. In our foundation portfolio we chose to make a horror film opening which included many different conventions that were both challenged and used in our film opening. Research was vital for this as we had to find other similar films in our genre in order create a different yet realistic horror film opening. Within our research we found that fade to blacks, fast cuts and a build up were common conventions which we used in our work. Without this research we would not have known this and our work would not have turner out as successful as it did.
With the advanced portfolio I created a campaign awareness advert about binge drinking in teenagers and young adults. Research into existing products in this area meant that I could make my advert realistic yet different to existing products.
For both portfolios especially the foundation portfolio research meant that we could look into existing production company's in order to find the right one to produce our film. We chose to use Hammer as from research we found that this company would give us the biggest budget and has produced many films of our chosen genre.
The planning in both portfolios meant that every aspect of creating the plan was done professionally and organised meaning that if anything went wrong when creating our film it would have little to no effect on the end product. Since doing our foundation portfolio we discovered areas in which were missing in the planning which meant that when we came to the advanced portfolio the planning was even more thorough than before meaning we ended up with a more successful product.
Overall from looking back at my work I realise that my planning and research improved greatly from doing the foundation and advanced portfolio. This was shown in the improved research and planning work that I had for my advanced portfolio compared to that of my foundation portfolio.
Wednesday, 1 October 2014
Exam questions
Question one -
Analyse your film opening with regards to genre.
For my film opening last year the genre that we chose to portray was horror. In our film opening we used a teenage female character as our main character and children characters as our object of fear and as the object that is haunting the nightmare of the main character.With regards to genre in our film opening we followed and challenged some of the common conventions from the horror film industry. With this industry it is easy to make a film that follows the conventions however it works well to challenge them so the film differs from the classic horror film. This genre also has sub-genres which allowed us to find specific conventions for each one. These sub-genres include Slasher, Paranormal and thriller.
Firstly we used the very common convention of fades to black as we felt this kept continuity throughout the scene and kept the audience wondering what would happen next. This also gave us the opportunity to put our titles in. We chose to have white flickering titles as this once again appeared in many of the films we researched and helped to establish the genre of our film. A challenge however was how large we had the titles, as usually they are small however in our film they were slightly larger.
Another common convention that we followed in our film was the fear of the unknown. We achieved this by showing parts of the story and characters at the beginning of the film allowing the rest of the film to explain the beginning. This also encouraged the audience to keep watching in order to find out the narrative of the film.
By using children as the object of fear in our film contrasted the typical innocent and harmless characters they usually play in other genres of film. They are often also used as the character in danger or that is effected in horror films.
The mise-en-scene and setting used in our film opening was stereotypical of a horror film as it was in a deserted area with dark lighting and in the main characters home at night. By using a lone female character most of the audience could relate to her and understand her vulnerability. The costumes and make up of the children and our main character in our film opening also met the convention as it is common to have some characters from the past as a scary feature in the film.
The length and composition of our shots were pretty common conventions of horror films however it was a challenge that we swapped between each shot at such a fast pace in the hope that this would keep the audience concentrating and intrigued.
Lastly our intended audience were also a common convention of horror films as from our research we found that the 18-25 age group were the most likely to watch a scary film. In order to meet this target audience we used a main character of this age and a household setting which would be easy to relate to.
Question 2 -
Discuss the way that women are represented in the media. Use work we have done so far to include a historical example and at least two contemporary ones to cover at least two different media types.
In the media women are portrayed in a generally stereotypical and negative way. Due to Gerbner's 'drip drip' theory this is a representation which continues to be shown to the public and therefore believed. Firstly they are portrayed as an object entirely for male pleasure. This theory follows the male gaze theory by Laura Mulvey which suggests that the media is created by middle aged men for middle aged men. In the explicit music video for blurred lines two men are seen performing the song with women dancing around them naked. This is a typical example of this common representation of women as the women are seen dancing around the fully clothed men naked for there pleasure and no other purpose.
Another example of this which did actually create more controversy is the 'Chandelier' video. In this video a little girl is shown dancing round provocatively in a costume that suggests she is naked and shows of every feature of her body. The reason for this being controversial is that instead of using and objectifying a women the main character is portrayed by a little girl wearing clothing that is skin tight and colour which gives the audience the appearance that she is entirely undressed, which is entirely inappropriate. The song is all about alcoholism and bad relationships which is another reason for the controversial views of this video. This fits Giroux's theory of youth being an 'empty category' which is relevant as it is clear that this video would have been created by adults and shows a child in an adult situation dancing to a song about adult problems.
Another representation of women which has been around since the olden days is that a women's purpose is to look after men and families and live out there lives at home as housewives. An example of this representation being used is in the film 'Brief encounter' where the women is seen constantly taking care and thinking of her husband while putting her own thoughts, feelings and opinions to the back of her mind so as not to offend or upset him. In this film the message is that even if women want and take the risk of trying to have a better more independent life, as shown by the main character, it will end up in tears and the only one who will get hurt is the women herself. This shows how women are represented to be entirely incapable of living without men.
In the film 'Sket' women are given an entirely different stereotype. The main characters in this film are all females who are shown to be aggressive, violent and bullies. This is a stereotypical representation of women that is becoming more and more common in current times due to the change in attitudes and role of women in society.
The majority of these representations and stereotypes are so often portrayed by the media that they have become dominant ideology and therefore its not often even noticed by everyday audiences, people just accept that this is the way it is.
Overall despite the slight changes and progress of the portrayal of the media generally the original stereotypes remain the same and continue to be just accepted by all audiences whether they are true or not.
Analyse your film opening with regards to genre.
For my film opening last year the genre that we chose to portray was horror. In our film opening we used a teenage female character as our main character and children characters as our object of fear and as the object that is haunting the nightmare of the main character.With regards to genre in our film opening we followed and challenged some of the common conventions from the horror film industry. With this industry it is easy to make a film that follows the conventions however it works well to challenge them so the film differs from the classic horror film. This genre also has sub-genres which allowed us to find specific conventions for each one. These sub-genres include Slasher, Paranormal and thriller.
Firstly we used the very common convention of fades to black as we felt this kept continuity throughout the scene and kept the audience wondering what would happen next. This also gave us the opportunity to put our titles in. We chose to have white flickering titles as this once again appeared in many of the films we researched and helped to establish the genre of our film. A challenge however was how large we had the titles, as usually they are small however in our film they were slightly larger.
Another common convention that we followed in our film was the fear of the unknown. We achieved this by showing parts of the story and characters at the beginning of the film allowing the rest of the film to explain the beginning. This also encouraged the audience to keep watching in order to find out the narrative of the film.
By using children as the object of fear in our film contrasted the typical innocent and harmless characters they usually play in other genres of film. They are often also used as the character in danger or that is effected in horror films.
The mise-en-scene and setting used in our film opening was stereotypical of a horror film as it was in a deserted area with dark lighting and in the main characters home at night. By using a lone female character most of the audience could relate to her and understand her vulnerability. The costumes and make up of the children and our main character in our film opening also met the convention as it is common to have some characters from the past as a scary feature in the film.
The length and composition of our shots were pretty common conventions of horror films however it was a challenge that we swapped between each shot at such a fast pace in the hope that this would keep the audience concentrating and intrigued.
Lastly our intended audience were also a common convention of horror films as from our research we found that the 18-25 age group were the most likely to watch a scary film. In order to meet this target audience we used a main character of this age and a household setting which would be easy to relate to.
Question 2 -
Discuss the way that women are represented in the media. Use work we have done so far to include a historical example and at least two contemporary ones to cover at least two different media types.
In the media women are portrayed in a generally stereotypical and negative way. Due to Gerbner's 'drip drip' theory this is a representation which continues to be shown to the public and therefore believed. Firstly they are portrayed as an object entirely for male pleasure. This theory follows the male gaze theory by Laura Mulvey which suggests that the media is created by middle aged men for middle aged men. In the explicit music video for blurred lines two men are seen performing the song with women dancing around them naked. This is a typical example of this common representation of women as the women are seen dancing around the fully clothed men naked for there pleasure and no other purpose.
Another example of this which did actually create more controversy is the 'Chandelier' video. In this video a little girl is shown dancing round provocatively in a costume that suggests she is naked and shows of every feature of her body. The reason for this being controversial is that instead of using and objectifying a women the main character is portrayed by a little girl wearing clothing that is skin tight and colour which gives the audience the appearance that she is entirely undressed, which is entirely inappropriate. The song is all about alcoholism and bad relationships which is another reason for the controversial views of this video. This fits Giroux's theory of youth being an 'empty category' which is relevant as it is clear that this video would have been created by adults and shows a child in an adult situation dancing to a song about adult problems.
Another representation of women which has been around since the olden days is that a women's purpose is to look after men and families and live out there lives at home as housewives. An example of this representation being used is in the film 'Brief encounter' where the women is seen constantly taking care and thinking of her husband while putting her own thoughts, feelings and opinions to the back of her mind so as not to offend or upset him. In this film the message is that even if women want and take the risk of trying to have a better more independent life, as shown by the main character, it will end up in tears and the only one who will get hurt is the women herself. This shows how women are represented to be entirely incapable of living without men.
In the film 'Sket' women are given an entirely different stereotype. The main characters in this film are all females who are shown to be aggressive, violent and bullies. This is a stereotypical representation of women that is becoming more and more common in current times due to the change in attitudes and role of women in society.
The majority of these representations and stereotypes are so often portrayed by the media that they have become dominant ideology and therefore its not often even noticed by everyday audiences, people just accept that this is the way it is.
Overall despite the slight changes and progress of the portrayal of the media generally the original stereotypes remain the same and continue to be just accepted by all audiences whether they are true or not.
Thursday, 14 August 2014
Self representation
Self representation is where people take videos and media products from the internet and interpret it in there own way in order to create new different media most likely with a different or opposing message.
In this video the prosumer has taken the song blurred lines and swapped the intended meaning of the song so that it fits men instead of women. The main reason they will have done this is to show how degrading the song is to women as it is likely that this was made by a women as the origional video fits the male gaze theory.
In this video the prosumer has taken the song blurred lines and swapped the intended meaning of the song so that it fits men instead of women. The main reason they will have done this is to show how degrading the song is to women as it is likely that this was made by a women as the origional video fits the male gaze theory.
Friday, 1 August 2014
How have I used the representation to create meaning in the film opening from last year?
We challenged the stereotype of children being sweet, caring and innocent in our film opening by using them as the horror feature in our film and questioning the stereotypical traits put upon them. This change in the representation of little girls would make the audience on edge as they would not be used to it and unsure how this representation will turn out.
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With out location of the girls bedroom we chose to use stereotypical colours and pops such as the pink bedding and pyjamas and the composition of our room shows the dressing table which is another common feature in a girls bedroom. We did this in order to illustrate the type of character that our main character plays which was a typical pink loving girly girl. This illustrates David Chandlers theory of a construction of reality as we have used a construction of reality to make a relatable character.
Tuesday, 29 July 2014
Main Theorists
George GERBNER - Started the CULTIVATION THEORY In 1976 which says that the media 'drip drips' and over time makes people see things in a certain way.
Jean BAUDRILLARD - Was a French theorist who had the theory of HYPER-REALITY in 1983. This means that the signs and symbols in culture have no basis in reality but have created a new world, one that is a simulation if reality and constructs a perceived reality.
Roland BARTHES - In 1957 Argued that representations are myths in the sense that they can have an appearance of being natural or commonsensial. Representations are problematic and simulations of realities which don't exist. A blurring between what is real and what is not, eg celebrity images.
Richard DYER - 1979"how we are seen determines how we are treated, how we treat others is based on how we see them, How we see them comes from representation. Your only experience of the group being represented might be the media text that the representation is in.
David CHANDLER -2006 Representation always involves the construction of reality.
Anthony GIDDENS - Ideology refers to influence of ideas on peoples beliefs and actions.
Henry JENKINS - 2006 Convergence culture. This is when consumers are empowered to edit, annotate and create content. Examples of this could include social network sites and wikis.
Laura MULVEY - 'The male gaze' The whole of the media is constructed from and for the view of middle ages males.
Thursday, 19 June 2014
Why is studying representation of women in the media is important
This is important due to the fact that the representation of women has been negative for a long time and due to Gerbner's cultivation theory and dominant ideologies this has become normal to so many people. In order for there to be a change in the representation of women in the media people need to realise that it is happening rather than being oblivious to it. In programs such as 'I want to marry harry' the girls are there because they want to find prince charming because from a young age with Barbie dolls and fairytales shown by disney they are exposed to this ideology and think it is what is expected of them. By other people watching these programs the ideology of women marrying princes continues and the cultivation theory continues.
Another negative representation of women in the media is that they are there purely for the pleasure and entertainment of men. This is shown in many different media products from mens magazines, films and music videos such as blurred lines. In these women are objectified as a physical form, purely for no other purpose than to pleasure and entertain men. Studying this representation of women is important because the more media products that portray this the more accepted this view of women becomes. This also fits with the theory of the male gaze which states that all media products are made by men for men. This is shown in many films where men are given the main role and hold a lot of power where the women are just there to entertain. For example in James Bond he is the main character who the film is named after where as the women are his side kicks or just there for him to admire and get pleasure from. The hegemony theory states that if the media is run by a small group of people and what they believe will be shown and will become a dominant ideology. So if it were a small group of white middle aged men, everyone else such as women and different cultures will be portrayed negatively and middle aged men will have the power and will be represented in a positive way.
Wednesday, 18 June 2014
A brief encounter
In this film here are a few different ways in which women are represented through out shown throughout the film.
Firstly the main character is represented to e very emotional, timid and weak throughout the whole film. This is firstly shown in te emotions that the character portrayed and her facial expressions. Throughout the film the character seemed to have an unhappy look upon her face even when she was with the man she loved. She also kept bursting into tears at everything which showed her to be very weak and emotional as this small act of being with this man, without even engaging in a physical relationship with him made her full of guilt and sorrow. Also throughout the film the women always seemed dependant on the male characters. For example when the main character would cry it would either be her husband or boyfriend who would console her. Also when the cafe lady was having trouble with the two male characters they sent for a man to come and help and he did. For this it seemed that she would 'pay him back' for this.
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Another representation of women in this film was as the worker and physical labourer. This was shown in the character of the waitresses and when the main character was asked to make dinner for her husband. Even in the different status's of the character shown in the costumes the males have more authority. For example the nanny or maid who was clearly this due to her maid costume was working for a man. Also when the mother got home she had to rush upstairs to the child. The barmaid was constantly working e it cleaning glasses or pouring drinks throughout the entirety of the film.
This film shows Laura Mulvey's the male gaze because all of the stereotypes put upon the woman would appear to be from the view of a man rather than that of a women.
George Gerbners theory is also relevant for this film as at this point in time women were seen in the way that she is presented in that she makes his dinner and is just there too look after her husband. It is likely that this could have been shown with the aim of the 'drip drip' making women and men view women in this way.
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Another representation shown in the film was that women are there purely for men's pleasure and entertainment. This was shown in how the main character was to make her husband dinner when she had just got back. It was also shown when the men in the cafe were bothering the woman and wanted pleasure from her. Even when the man got rid of those two men she suggested she would 'thank him later' which we assume means physically which shows how she wants to pleasure him.
Firstly the main character is represented to e very emotional, timid and weak throughout the whole film. This is firstly shown in te emotions that the character portrayed and her facial expressions. Throughout the film the character seemed to have an unhappy look upon her face even when she was with the man she loved. She also kept bursting into tears at everything which showed her to be very weak and emotional as this small act of being with this man, without even engaging in a physical relationship with him made her full of guilt and sorrow. Also throughout the film the women always seemed dependant on the male characters. For example when the main character would cry it would either be her husband or boyfriend who would console her. Also when the cafe lady was having trouble with the two male characters they sent for a man to come and help and he did. For this it seemed that she would 'pay him back' for this.Another representation of women in this film was as the worker and physical labourer. This was shown in the character of the waitresses and when the main character was asked to make dinner for her husband. Even in the different status's of the character shown in the costumes the males have more authority. For example the nanny or maid who was clearly this due to her maid costume was working for a man. Also when the mother got home she had to rush upstairs to the child. The barmaid was constantly working e it cleaning glasses or pouring drinks throughout the entirety of the film. This film shows Laura Mulvey's the male gaze because all of the stereotypes put upon the woman would appear to be from the view of a man rather than that of a women.
George Gerbners theory is also relevant for this film as at this point in time women were seen in the way that she is presented in that she makes his dinner and is just there too look after her husband. It is likely that this could have been shown with the aim of the 'drip drip' making women and men view women in this way.
Another representation shown in the film was that women are there purely for men's pleasure and entertainment. This was shown in how the main character was to make her husband dinner when she had just got back. It was also shown when the men in the cafe were bothering the woman and wanted pleasure from her. Even when the man got rid of those two men she suggested she would 'thank him later' which we assume means physically which shows how she wants to pleasure him.
The main character was also shown to be slightly unstable at points, due to her changing emotions very quickly and spontaneously for example when she would burst into tears suddenly or burst into uncontrollable laughter for no obvious reason.
The main character was also shown to be truthful and kind hearted. This was shown in how the whole film was her imagining herself to e telling her husband about her affair. This shows how she wishes she could tell him but for his sake she doesn't showing how he puts his feelings before hers showing her to be an ultimately decent person despite falling in love with another man.
Lastly women are shown to be less educated than men. This is shown but he fact that the husband sits and does a times crossword which is difficult while she sits there sewing. This is also shown by the fact that her boyfriend is a doctor, her husband wears a suit and she spends her time stereotypically shopping. The there women in the film are shown to have jobs like waitress which would not take much intellectual skill.
Thursday, 12 June 2014
Tuesday, 10 June 2014
Introduction to Representation of Women
Key Words...
- Representation - the re-presenting of a reality to an audience by a producer.
- Stereotype - Grouping people because of assumed characteristics.
- Denotation - Actually what you are seeing in front of you.
- Connotation - The way in which things are interpreted and assumed.
- Challenge - To challenge a convention you go against the norm.
- Mediation - This is the process of taking a reality, interpreting it and re-presenting it to the audience.
- Male gaze - This is a theory that the media is made by men for men.
- Self representation -
- Ideology - messages or values that are embedded in the media.
- Dominant ideology - these are ideologies that are accepted by the majority as the norm in society.
- Hegemony - The ruling class maintains their power through the control of ideas and culture rather than force.
Representation of Women in 'Sket'...
Representation of Women in 'Blurred Lines'...
In the video the mens gaze is shown because the men are constantly watching the women as they dance around them.
In this screen shot the singer can actually be seen staring at the woman's bum, and she is shown to be not bothered by this as the continues to dance in front of him.
The theorist that can be connected with this music video is Richard Dyer because he talks about how people are treated affects the way that they are represented.
The theorist that can be connected with this music video is Richard Dyer because he talks about how people are treated affects the way that they are represented.
Representation of Women in 'Chandelier'...
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